Named in 1643 for the day of its discovery, the island was annexed and settlement began by the UK in 1888 with the discovery of the island's phosphate deposits. Following the Second World War, Christmas Island came under the jurisdiction of the new British Colony of Singapore. The island existed as a separate Crown colony from 1 January 1958 to 1 October 1958 when its transfer to Australian jurisdiction was finalized. That date is still celebrated on the first Monday in October as Territory Day. Almost two-thirds of the island has been declared a national park.

Geography :: Christmas Island

Location:

Southeastern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of Indonesia

Geographic coordinates:

10 30 S, 105 40 E

Map references:

Southeast Asia

Area:

total:135 sq km

land:135 sq km

water:0 sq km

country comparison to the world:
222

Area - comparative:

about three-quarters the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries:

0 km

Coastline:

138.9 km

Maritime claims:

territorial sea:12nm

contiguous zone:12nm

exclusive fishing zone:200nm

Climate:

tropical with a wet season (December to April) and dry season; heat and humidity moderated by trade winds

This is the population pyramid for Christmas Island. A population pyramid illustrates the age and sex structure of a country's population and may provide insights about political and social stability, as well as economic development. The population is distributed along the horizontal axis, with males shown on the left and females on the right. The male and female populations are broken down into 5-year age groups represented as horizontal bars along the vertical axis, with the youngest age groups at the bottom and the oldest at the top. The shape of the population pyramid gradually evolves over time based on fertility, mortality, and international migration trends.

For additional information, please see the entry for Population pyramid on the Definitions and Notes page under the References tab.

Population growth rate:

1.11%(2014 est.)

country comparison to the world:
97

Population distribution:

majority of the population lives on the northern tip of the island

Sex ratio:

NA

Infant mortality rate:

total:NA

male:NA

female:NA

Life expectancy at birth:

total population:NA

male:NA

female:NA(2017 est.)

Total fertility rate:

NA

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:

NA

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:

NA

HIV/AIDS - deaths:

NA

Government :: Christmas Island

Country name:

conventional long form:
Territory of Christmas Island

conventional short form:
Christmas Island

etymology:
named by English Captain William MYNORS for the day of its discovery, Christmas Day (25 December 1643)

Dependency status:

non-self governing territory of Australia; administered from Canberra by the Department of Regional Australia, Local Government, Arts and Sport

Australia Day (commemorates the arrival of the First Fleet of Australian settlers), 26 January (1788)

Constitution:

history:
1 October 1958 (Christmas Island Act 1958)

amendments:
amended many times, last in 2016
(2017)

Legal system:

legal system is under the authority of the governor general of Australia and Australian law

Citizenship:

see Australia

Suffrage:

18 years of age

Executive branch:

chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General of the Commonwealth of Australia General Sir Peter COSGROVE (since 28 March 2014)

head of government:
Administrator Natasha GRIGGS (since 5 October 2018)

elections/appointments:
the monarchy is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the Australian prime minister; administrator appointed by the governor general of Australia for a 2-year term and represents the monarch and Australia

Legislative branch:

description:
unicameral Christmas Island Shire Council (9 seats; members directly elected by simple majority vote to serve 4-year terms with a portion of the membership renewed every 2 years)

elections:
held every 2 years with half the members standing for election; last held on 21 October 2017 (next to be held in October 2019)

under the terms of the Territorial Law Reform Act 1992, Western Australia provides court services as needed for the island, including the Supreme Court and subordinate courts (District Court, Magistrate Court, Family Court, Children's Court, and Coroners' Court)

Political parties and leaders:

none

International organization participation:

none

Diplomatic representation in the US:

none (territory of Australia)

Diplomatic representation from the US:

none (territory of Australia)

Flag description:

territorial flag; divided diagonally from upper hoist to lower fly; the upper triangle is green with a yellow image of the Golden Bosun Bird superimposed; the lower triangle is blue with the Southern Cross constellation, representing Australia, superimposed; a centered yellow disk displays a green map of the island

note: the flag of Australia is used for official purposes

National symbol(s):

golden bosun bird

National anthem:

note: as a territory of Australia, "Advance Australia Fair" remains official as the national anthem, while "God Save the Queen" serves as the royal anthem (see Australia)

Economy :: Christmas Island

Economy - overview:

The main economic activities on Christmas Island are the mining of low grade phosphate, limited tourism, the provision of government services and, since 2005, the construction and operation of the Immigration Detention Center. The government sector includes administration, health, education, policing, customs, quarantine, and defense.

GDP (purchasing power parity):

NA

Agriculture - products:

NA

Industries:

tourism, phosphate extraction (near depletion)

Labor force:

NA

Budget:

revenues:NA

expenditures:NA

Fiscal year:

1 July - 30 June

Exports:

NA

Exports - commodities:

phosphate

Imports:

NA

Imports - commodities:

consumer goods

Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:

(31 December 2009 est.)

Exchange rates:

Australian dollars (AUD) per US dollar -

1.311(2017 est.)

1.3442(2016 est.)

1.3442(2015)

1.3291(2014 est.)

1.1094(2013 est.)

Communications :: Christmas Island

Telephone system:

general assessment:
service provided by the Australian network

domestic:
local area code - 08; GSM mobile-cellular telephone service is provided by Telstra as part of the Australian network